Student Profile: Melissa Lester

For Melissa Lester—a northwest Philadelphia native who double-majored in biology and sociology as a Temple undergraduate—attending Temple medical school was an obvious choice: “My family and I previously used the hospital and I knew that the doctors really cared about their patients and treated everyone really well. That’s the kind of doctor I want to be.”

After working a year as a research assistant and intern in School of Medicine research laboratories, during her first year at Temple she contributed to a poster presentation at the American Society of Hematology’s annual conference in San Francisco. As president of Temple’s Student National Medical Association chapter, she represented Temple at SNMA’s annual conference in New Orleans. In addition, through SNMA she has encouraged urban high schoolers to pursue healthcare professions and conducted health fair screenings.

“My first year was great,” says the second-year student, who conducted Ophthalmology research last summer at the NIH. “I’ve met students from all over the country and abroad, and everyone wants to help each other do the best that they can do. I’ve also been able to continue community service and I’ve learned so much in class and through shadowing my professors. I’ve definitely grown, both academically and personally.”